What Is Your Most Unique Holiday Tradition?

Real Simple readers share the uncustomary customs they celebrate year after year.

Since we moved to Virginia four years ago, my husband and I have attended the annual National Menorah Lighting on the Ellipse, in Washington, D.C. A military band accompanies three cantors while they give the blessing and sing, and latkes and sufganiyot (a type of doughnut often enjoyed on Hanukkah) are served. Afterward we go to our favorite Mediterranean restaurant. I am pregnant with twins due this month, and I can’t wait to share this tradition with them.
Cyndi Alderson
Oak Hill, Virginia

When my two siblings and I were very young, our nana started the tradition of hiding a small plastic bird in our Christmas tree (it was notable for the Band-Aid on its left leg, courtesy of a run-in with the family dog). The three of us would search high and low to find the bird, which was supposed to bring the finder luck in the coming year. Once we were adults, our mom wanted us to continue the ritual with our own families, so she gave each of us a replica of a red cardinal. And ever since we’ve enjoyed watching the next generation search for these birds.
Beth Britton
New York, New York

A marshmallow fight. It always happens after dinner on Christmas Eve, and usually one of my cousins starts it. Everyone joins in, from the toddlers to the grandparents, until someone waves the white flag.
Jessica P. Sanchez
La Mirada, California

During Hanukkah, we do a Yankee swap, a gift exchange. It has always been great fun, but a few years ago my husband and I decided to make it even more interesting by sneaking decoy gifts into the mix. They look like normal presents from the outside—we wrap up things like CD cases, gift-card envelopes, and wine bottles—but once you look inside, you see that the original item has been replaced with a note card bearing an instruction, such as “Switch gifts with a person of the opposite gender” or “Choose a new gift—and no one can take it from you.” This little twist was a surprise to everyone the first year, but now it is our favorite part of the ritual.
Christine Gritmon
Pearl River, New York

Every December, my friends and I visit a nearby resort that hosts a holiday gnome hunt. Twenty of these white-bearded men, which range from 6 to 12 inches tall, are hidden throughout a giant atrium. Our group of 12 splits into teams of three, and we give ourselves a two-hour time limit to scavenge for the gnomes. The folks who find the largest number of them win free ice cream or hot chocolate, depending on the weather that night.
Alicia Carby
Orlando, Florida

While we decorate the tree, our family devours a spread of doughnuts and Champagne. We always save the wire cage from the top of the bottle, write the year underneath the cap with a permanent marker, then affix the cage to a high branch. My husband and I have done this since we got married, nearly three decades ago, so this year there will be 27 Champagne cages adorning our tree. They are unusual, to say the least, and add a fun pop of color.
Evelyn Cucchiara
Madison, New Jersey

One tradition that my clan adopted from our hometown of Maracaibo, Venezuela—in fact, it’s common in several Latin American countries—is to wear a new pair of yellow underpants on New Year’s Eve and into the following day. It’s supposed to bring good luck. My husband, who is American, was amused to hear of this custom when I told him about it back in 2006. Later that same day, he came home with two pairs of underwear: Mine were simply yellow, but he could find only a pair of SpongeBob Square-pants boxers for himself. Two pairs of lucky underwear now top our holiday shopping lists every year.
Natalia Gustafson
Baton Rouge, Louisiana